The invention pertains generally to a cutting tool that is useful for the impingement of a substrate or earth strata such as, for example, asphaltic roadway material, coal deposits, mineral formations and the like. More specifically, the invention pertains to the aforementioned cutting tool wherein the cutting tool is rotatable about its central longitudinal axis and carries a superhard cutting member at the axially forward end thereof. The superhard cutting member can be made from a superhard material (or includes a portion thereof made from a superhard material). Superhard materials useful in the present invention include, without limitation, materials such as polycrystalline diamond (PCD) or polycrystalline cubic boron nitride (PCBN).
A cutting tool for the described uses typically presents a generally elongate, cylindrical geometry. The cutting tool comprises an elongate cutting tool body, which has an axially forward end and an opposite axially rearward end. A hard cutting member or a superhard cutting member typically affixes to the axial forward end of the cutting tool body. The cutting tool body typically carries an assembly or means by which the cutting tool is rotatably carried by a stationary block or holder on a drum.
Cutting tools can experience extreme wear and failure in a number of ways due to the environment in which they operate and must be frequently replaced. It would thus be highly desirable to provide an improved cutting tool that experiences an increase in useful tool life as compared to heretofore known cutting tools.